Legoland

The boys worked hard all summer to earn enough LEGO stickers on their Legoland castle chart! Using kind words, going to the potty (Jake), helping out with chores or playing with baby sister earned them a couple of Lego stickers. (Basically, they did anything remotely good and we exclaimed, you get a sticker, and maybe, later that night, it made it on the chart -another case of lazy parenting!) Of course, this was a ruse, because we were secretly planning to go with our friends the Carlsons on August 8th all along. So, when we returned from our long vacation to Utah and Northern CA, we had about 4 days to fill in 300+ legos. Boy, they were REALLY good for those couple of days. And, we had a blast at Legoland. Great job, boys!

Ian taking the wheel on a boat ride with Whitney

Little hams: Kater-Kates and Livy-Lou

Jake and Albert E.

Triumphant return from the the Dino-coaster. We had to talk Ian into this one.

Matt and Mindy TOTALLY cheating in the Fire Truck Races

The fabulous four- Ian, Jake, Olivia and Whitney

The daddies on the Knight's Tournament -scary!

Any Star Wars Fans?

We love Star Wars! A day doesn't go by where the boys are not wielding a light saber, battling evil droids, siths and storm troopers or staging their own Jedi Training Academy(our new favorite attraction at Disneyland).

Have you seen the new Star Wars stamps...pretty cool! http://www.starwars.com/collecting/news/misc/news20070328.html


Jacob and Ian went to get the mail from the new mail box yesterday. Apparently they couldn't reach the mail at the very back. Jacob came running in the house yelling, "Mom, I can't reach the mail and Ian can't reach the mail so you have to get it...YOU'RE OUR ONLY HOPE!"

Back from Vacation

I've been road tripping with the kids for the last two weeks. Here's a photo log of our journey:

First we visited my sister Stefanie in St. George, UT. This is her son, Nathan with Katie-Kates.

We were at the Places (our sister-in-law's family) in Bountiful, UT for the 24th of July.

We visited my dear friend Amy and her three girls, Millie, Abby and Jane in Midway, UT.

We hung out at Grandma and Grandpa Morgan's in Draper. Hill and I are sporting our new dresses - gotta love T.J. Maxx!

Kate learned to say ball.

Jake playing with his favorite uncles, Spencer and Justin, a.k.a. Super Mario Brothers.

At the Aquarium in Sandy with grandma and grandpa.

Hanging out with cousins in Draper.

Then we drove across the lovely, beautiful, scenic I-80 to

the Hellewell Lodge in Baxter, CA. (between Reno and Sacramento)

Lumberjack Ian.

Turns out the boys LOVE chopping wood.

My parents came with us. Here they are at Lake Tahoe.

We finally picked up Ben in Sacramento and visited Ben's sister Heather and family while we were there. The boys enjoyed seeing more cousins!

Panning for gold in Baxter. (We didn't find any!)

Going to the beach with Owen and Janine

My sister Janine and my little nephew Owen came for a visit last weekend. We went to the beach for Owen's first experience with the ocean.

Week of Quarantine

3 weeks earlier - Ben has a mysterious localized rash on his back and a recurring tingling pain in his shoulder and arm. We're not sure of the identity of this ailment.

Saturday 10:00am - Ian takes off his shirt so I can lather him up with sunscreen for the beach and I see what looks like a rash on his chest, stomach and back. We suspect the chicken pox. (Here's a picture of his back.)

Saturday 11:00am -After some research on the internet, we are pretty sure Ian has the chicken pox, realizing that he got it from Ben, who's recent malady was, in fact, Shingles, which is a manifestation of the dormant chicken pox virus.

Saturday 11:02am - The quarantine begins. We call everyone we have been in contact with in the last two days. Ian has been incubating the virus but was not contagious until Thursday, possibly Friday.


Monday 11:00am - After waiting outside the doctor's office in the van for someone to come and get us to go in to see the doctor, Ian is diagnosed with an "atypical" case of the chicken pox, common in children who have been vaccinated and exposed to the virus. The Doctor gives Jacob a surprise booster shot (now recommended for children ages 4-6), and checks Kate's chart to make sure she had been given the vaccine a few weeks earlier when she turned one.


The present moment - We are stuck at home, not able to be with friends or go to the store, the park, the pool or the beach. AND the boys are missing Hero Camp, a youth conference type of activity for kids in the Irvine Stake. Boo-hoo!

Change of Address

We moved to our new house! It has been so nice to stretch out in the 1950 square feet of room!









We love the new kitchen and bathrooms, the big backyard, and the park and pool are right across the street!

Happy 4th of July!

We spent the 4th of July in California's central valley this year. Ben's college roommate invited us and the Judds, another rommate's family, to his parents farm in Turlock. It was about 105 degrees, but the kids had a blast feeding the chickens, bouncing in the bounce house, throwing water balloons at each other, and watching the local fireworks. I had a blast picking delicious peaches and pluots in the orchard, eating an amazing country breakfast and meeting the cows and a local bull who was "on a date" at the farm.